Must be Magic
by ACreativeHobbit
Summary: F'erox notices something is off about unusually happy place. AU!timeline of the Quest for Erebor. OC/OC. OC/Canon mentioned. For Valentine's One-shot contest for The Road Goes Ever On forum.


**A/N: Hey, this is a short little one-shot for that famed Valentine's Day! Setting occurs at Beorn's, during an AU-ish timeline of the Quest for Erebor. Includes mentions of OC's that are not mine, and of course Tolkien's Legendarium isn't mine at all. The only thing that is mine is the character F'erox who unfortunately, has gotten struck by a Cupid's arrow. Poor guy.**

 **Enjoy!**

F'erox was not used to these types of surroundings.

In the short life of a man, he'd already grown used to the lack of peace and tranquility he'd known as a child. In fact, it was almost unsettling. Usually with quiet, still air, came the promise of an impending attack, and that was the fact he did not like.

So he felt torn between feeling at leisure, and being wary.

Around him the bees were content to ignore his dilemma and buzzed happily along, working at their leisure. The other animals grazed and fed without a care in the world. Pigs, goats, chickens, animals of all sorts, yet nothing F'erox had never seen before.

Even through his quiet observing, F'erox paced about the grounds, quiet with activity, as everyone either checked supplies, relaxed and sat around, trained, or paced about as he was pacing. He could see Talon, trying to have a normal conversation with Fenn. Bilbo and Lavinia looking at the oddities of plants around and perhaps trying to seem casual in picking flowers amongst blushes and hidden smiles. F'erox hid a smirk and shook his head. Hobbit courtships and things of the sort were so strange to him. Not only that, Bofur and Ponoa seemed quite close and comfortable as well.

Unbidden, Nyx crept into his mind, and he half-imagined, half-tried-to-stop-himself-imagining Nyx and himself doing all the things he saw. The thoughts made him smile, shoving his gaze down to the ground.

But then, _oh curses_ , who was it that caught him at a gentle, private moment? It had to be Nyx herself of course!

"Now what might _you_ be smiling at?" the smooth voice asked.

F'erox's smile faded into an unreadable expression of mixed horror and awe, the usually grim ex-Ranger knocked completely dumbstruck.

Was this not a goddess descended among the peoples of Middle-Earth? The mere mortals? Surely the tales of simple-minded men in taverns could not compare to this… queen?

"Oh come now, it isn't as if you've never seen me before." Nyx dismissed his open-mouthed gaze and began to approach him from her spot in a patch of trees lit with glimmering sunlight, which in the moment, had appeared to have crowned her reigning monarch of forest nymphs.

As she stepped towards him, F'erox felt nervous, and in his hurry to say something coherent, unwittingly revealed a glimpse of his thoughts. He took a bow- a clumsy one at that.

"M-my lady, Nyx." he stammered.

Nyx gave him a funny look.

"What has gotten into you, F'erox? We always used to get along perfectly well." Nyx tutted, getting closer and closer, an indecipherable smirk on her face, bright, blue eyes twinkling. "Take a walk around the house with me?" she offered. "That might clear your head from the clouds that you let in there."

"I assure you, my lady, I have not been as careless, as you say to allow the fog into my head." he smiled slightly, trying to reclaim his previous friendly attitude. Now then! Where did this come from? Why could he barely function?

Surely this place had some sort of bewitching spell on him! Never before had he allowed his senses to befuddle him so! Maybe the skin-changer was not to be trusted at all? The food was poisoned and clouding their minds! Danger!

Yet with her seemingly-magical powers, Nyx's touch- linking their arms- calmed him. The cloud at last departed from his mind and he visibly relaxed as they walked slowly about the grounds. They conversed as they used to on the long roads quiet evenings. Yes, something had changed, and it was an unspoken one, but they both welcomed it.

By the doorway, two brothers shared a smirk and eye-roll.

"This place really is magical- there are two more of 'em!" the blond pointed out. They both burst into quiet snickers as the day wore on.

 **A/N: Hope you liked it! Rosie, this one's for you! May F'ernyx last forever and ever! XD**

 **Happy Valentine's Day everybody!**

 **-Hobbie**


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